Wednesday, November 11, 2009

My Daughter, The Jock

Not a sports picture...but still pretty cute!

Emily started basketball this week. Soccer doesn't finish until later this month, so she's double-teamin' right now. She loves it and she's good. I'm proud of her. I'm impressed that she can actually throw and catch and dribble and kick. And run. And run. And run. Wow, this girl can run. So what if she didn't start walking 'til 18 months? She sure makes up for it now.

Miss Em lives for competition. She loves games and loves to win. Many evenings she chooses a few rounds of Uno over a bedtime story. Most times she wins. Fair and square.

I love having an athletic daughter. I always admired the girls who could flirt with the boys and then beat 'em on the tennis court. I always wanted to be the sporty type. But it's kinda hard to be sporty if you hate running and are afraid of the ball.

Back in my Elementary Ed days at BYU, I had to take a course for future gym teachers. To pass the class I was required to do the following:

  1. Stand on my head for 60 seconds. I am not kidding.
  2. Make five free-throw shots in a row.
  3. Throw a football some ridiculous number of yards away from my body.

Luckily, that semester I had this really cute boyfriend who was also pretty athletic. I felt all helpless and feminine while he showed me the finer points of throwing a spiral. So romantic! I was sure the big He-Man was falling hopelessly in love with Dainty Li'l Me.

It worked. But a few months later, after we were engaged and talking about our future family, he said, "I just hope our kids take after me, you know, in the coordination department."

Fortunately (and, quite miraculously, actually) they all did.

And, because one of the best (and worst) things about being a mom is reliving your own childhood through your kids' experiences...now I can proudly say that I am a girl jock, too.

Yay, team!

13 comments:

diane said...

This is the story of me and Brynn as well. Only instead of soccer it is La Crosse, volleyball and basketball. I love it too. I only sort of wish she was a dancer too...

Girl power! She is adorable.

Diane said...

The must have changed the elementary ed requirements at BYU after I left - I did not have to take that gym class. Good thing or I might never have graduated and taught school (where I never needed those particular skills).

the wrath of khandrea said...

i just can't get over how much she looks like jake in that picture.

it's insane, actually.

Christie said...

Em is the best of both worlds. Girly and gorgeous, yet strong and athletic. CANNOT wait to see her!

♥Shally said...

I am thinking my Bray is going to be like that. She is more interested in playing baseball than watching her brother do it! :)

Serae will cheer for her on the sidelines. :) (She is SO not interested in sports.)

cami said...

Super cute, your little Em! I love that she has that competitive streak... Go get 'em girl!

Ilene said...

I had a guy at BYU teach me how to throw a football. Didn't marry him, but his lesson sure impressed my future husband.

Those class requirements are hilarious. I wonder how many women ended up marrying the guy they arranged to help them...

martha corinna said...

Good for her! And that photo is pretty cute.

For some fitness class I had a BYU, in order to get an A at the end of the semester you had to be able to complete a # of ridiculous tasks as well. I could do all of them except one, which was to be able to do 5 pull-ups, not girl ones but real hard core pull ups. Only one girl in the class could even do one, and of course, she was military and her biceps were bigger than Texas.

heidiram said...

Awesome! I think I will also be reliving my non-existent childhood sports career through my daughter. My parents did not encourage us (the girls) to play sports AT.ALL. I often wonder if I would have started sports and a more active lifestyle at a younger age if I would struggle with my weight like I do now.

Lauren in GA said...

Stand on your head for 60 seconds? What sport would require that? I think I would have gotten lightheaded.

That is so neat that Em is athletic. I agree with Christie...she is the best of both worlds!

Hazen5 said...

Stand on your head for 60 seconds, I'd get an F!

She is an adorable athlete!

Jessica said...

I'm going in on Monday and checking to see if my kids' teachers can stand on their heads.

Also, because I'm too lazy to click on the comments of each post: LOVED your Monday post. I'd never thought about how it sets the tone for the whole week but it TOTALLY does.

(I'm so happy I can picture your house now as I read these posts. It was SO fun to stay with you!)

Julie H said...

My daugther signed up for basketball at school. She was all excited about it at first. Now she's hardly going to practice and I'm pretty sure she's going to drop out soon!

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